Poetry

I weep,
I weep,
weep for the sins,
the sins of my shepherds!
My shepherds who would
play – who is the greatest –
play power games
with my body!
My blood!

A sacrilege!

My body torn and nailed,
Nailed on the altar of sacrifice –
My Cross!
My blood spilled with water
flowing down the Cross –
The Altar of sacrifice!

My Body
My blood finds
Its tabernacle within,
within each,
within every friend –
my people!
Each one, all as one!
You in me and I in you –
Tabernacle to the world!

Degraded!
Degraded is my Altar of Sacrifice!
That place where human power died!
The Altar – Divine life embracing all!

I live –
I move –
I have my being
within my people!
My people, confused –
mislead sheep!
Mislead in the name of shepherd authority –
Shepherd, called to carry home the lost-
strayed sheep!

I weep!
I weep –
My people.
See me –
find me,
on the Altar of sacrifice in your midst!
The Altar, centre of my Sanctuary –
Center of my church!
Eat my body
Drink my blood –
Find me within you!
Find me within the body of faith –
The community of living Love –
Living mercy!

Earthly tabernacles
will fall apart –
like the tents in the desert –
even as they dance
from place to place –
within a church.
Churches will not be
left stone upon a stone!

But you –
you,
My people,
My Tabernacle!
Will live forever!

My AltarMy cross of sacrifice
in the midst of my living tabernacle
My Church!

Friend-
You asked me yesterday if I was sick.
Today
I can answer your question very differently.
I am totally devastated!
Sick to the depth of my being!
Crying almost inconsolably!

The Mass trumps everything!

This fact,
and remembering to pray –
to pray for the sins of our leaders –
these thoughts helped me
to remain in the Church!
to remain for the Mass!

A slight consolation –
really –
not a consolation at all-
I met others who felt the same way.

I,
I feel like a voice crying in the wilderness.
A good thing that it is Lent
and I can be in the Garden with the weeping Lord!

How backwards
upside we have things!.

The Lord is screaming!
Screaming at us –
“Look after my poor, destitute,
war ravaged people!”
And we –
we sinfully throw away money
on needless,
re-organizing
of the Lord’s sanctuary!

The Lord would be happy to live in a tent!
He could not care less,
if the tabernacle is –
in an outside chapel,
a side altar, behind a Holy of Holies veil,
or behind the altar –
or if there was a tabernacle at all!
The tabernacle circling –
circling around the church building
for centuries!

It is the people of God
who are the sanctuary,
the tabernacle,
the Church!

Have we learned nothing –
nothing at all
from the last 3 years
years of utter destruction of ancient shrines,
churches,
basilicas
and other holy places?

Unmentioned in the Sunday homily –
the devastation of the Jews!
Why?
Because Pilate mixed the blood of people he had slain
with the blood of sacrifice!
We!
We are doing a comparable deed!

Rather than bind their wounds,
feeding and housing them,
we,
we are
taking the blood of the martyrs
and refugees of ISIS –
their ancient sanctuaries destroyed, desecrated –
and pouring that blood –
and pouring it into our coffers!
Oblivious to the cries of the Lord
for his ravaged people!
Pouring their blood into our coffers!

What you see is what I have.
Body devoid of stillness –
a soul of great desire –
unfulfilled!

Be convinced!
This smile –
this cultured voice-
these social manners
honed.
No – not to deceive you
but me –
but me !
In those dark
those frightening recesses
hollowed out over years,
over years –
to hide, to hide
to hide –
no, not from you –
no! No! No!
But the scarecrow in me!
Deep within
it screams with laughter
that must be drowned!

Surely goodness,
remembered mores –
eternal truths,
Will soothe the inner scream,
guide the wavering steps –
bathe with salve
almost felt upon the yearning flesh,
in the communal bath of acceptance,
smiling welcome –
drowning the howling inner scream.
Oh! Yes!
I am normal! One of them all!
Yes!

I belong!
Yes?
Yes-
Oh, Oh – but I must –
mustn’t I!?

I?
Tell me!
Soothe me!
I would know what I cannot
in that inner, restless darkness!
Honed how –
I do not know!
Why?
Honed why?
In suddenness it coils, chokes, cries!
Relieve me!
Calm me – Please!

All will be well!
All will be well?
Lord!
Lord! You –
You love me –
Don’t you?
Don’t you!

Isn’t it –
Isn’t it true!
O tell me!
As I wander in your house.

“You are my child!
“I know you!”
“I love you!”
“So Precious to me!”

Oh! Oh but I am afraid –
afraid of me,
afraid of you,
afraid, afraid of –
afraid of life.
Afraid of what I yearn for!
Afraid! Oh yes –
Afraid of being afraid!

All things are one.
Unity of life in all things –
And I,
I am one with all that is –
The only one life – God!
One truth – God!
One love – God!
One word spoken – God!
God is All!
The One, the Only Reality
God!

I Am, is with you!
Father, Son and Holy Spirit
In all that is!

To be! To be!
Is to rest O Lord
In that depth!
To rest – in the I Am
To be still before you, my God –,
in peace –
Peace like the calm water
receiving the sun,
the light, the trees and the heavens,
reflecting them back again
as one with the water –
So – in the stillness within –
may I
reflect you, Lord.